


Measure Your Life in Love

by FallingLikeThis



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: F/M, Father-Son Relationship, Harry is his son, Harry means the world to him, Liam is a good father, M/M, Niall Horan & Harry Styles Friendship, No Incest, just fluffy father/son stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-18
Updated: 2013-11-18
Packaged: 2018-01-01 23:56:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1050106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallingLikeThis/pseuds/FallingLikeThis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Liam is a great father. Harry is an amazing son. Both know just how lucky they are to have each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Measure Your Life in Love

**Author's Note:**

> So, I don't know who will read this but I hope it's enjoyable.

 

 

 Liam watched his baby boy’s eyelids flutter as the infant slept peacefully in his arms. Liam had lost his wife during childbirth which had been really hard. A lot of people might blame the baby for the loss of their partner but Liam knew better. He didn’t think he would ever love anything more than he loved the sleeping babe he’d been gifted. He closed his eyes for a moment thanking God for his son, Harry, and promising to do his best not to let anything ever hurt the child, vowing to work as hard as it took for the rest of his life to keep that promise.

 ~@~

 Ten years later, after many skinned knees and friends come and gone, Liam feels like a bit of a failure. He blows on Harry’s knee to ease the sting of the cleansing alcohol he’s just rubbed on it before covering the battered skin with a bandage and placing a kiss over the top for good measure.

Harry is long past believing that pain can be healed by his father’s kisses but Liam isn’t quite ready to give up the ritual.

Liam wipes Harry’s tears off his cheeks and wraps his son in a hug that Harry gratefully accepts.  Liam holds Harry, squeezing his eyes shut so that he doesn’t start crying, too. His boy is the world to him and Liam can’t stand seeing him cry. Harry hiccups in his arms for another few minutes before he’s ready to go back out and play some more.

There’s a park just across the street where Liam sits and watches Harry play with the other neighborhood kids. The other kids have a tendency to gravitate toward Harry, even the older ones. Harry has always been a bit of a charmer and there’s not a single kid there who doesn’t want Harry on their team when they play Freeze Tag or Red Rover.

Liam watches as Harry befriends a little Irish boy who’s new to the neighborhood when everybody else chooses to ignore the poor boy. Seeing Harry accept the boy so freely makes Liam smile with pride at the knowledge that he’s raised his boy right. Soon, all the other kids want to play with the boy too but he still sticks closest to Harry who’s happy to have him and Liam thinks maybe he’s just witnessed the birth of a lifelong friendship.

Soon, its dinner time and Liam offers to take Harry’s new friend, Niall, and his mother to dinner and ice cream after. Niall’s mother declines for herself but allows Niall to go, delighted that he’s made such a good friend so quickly.

Harry and Niall talk and laugh all through dinner and Liam thinks he couldn’t have picked a better friend for Harry if he tried. The two boys basically ignore him throughout desert, too, but Liam doesn’t mind. He enjoys seeing Harry laugh and have fun in a way that Liam hasn’t been able to give him for a few years now. Liam feels sad for a moment because his baby boy is growing up and doesn’t need him as much but it fades quickly in the wake of seeing his son’s eyes shine with laughter as Niall tells him a truly awful joke.

After ice cream, they drop Niall off at home and head back to their own place.

When Liam tucks Harry into bed that night, Harry hugs him and kisses his cheek like always telling Liam he’s had the best day ever. And when his son falls asleep with a smile on his face, Liam may or may not wipe away a single tear before heading to his own room.

 ~@~

 

Four more years pass and Niall has become a fixture in their household.

 Liam has watched as Harry and his closest friend have gone through every phase imaginable. They’ve tried the preppy polo shirt with chinos look that Liam was prone to in his youth. They’ve tried the flannel shirt-baggy pants-grunge look that Harry seemed fond of but Liam breathed a sigh of relief when it didn’t stick. Lately, the two seem to like the muscle shirt-tight jeans look, proudly showing off the barely-there muscles on their biceps.

Harry sometimes ties a bandanna around his curls and has taken to asking Liam if he can get a tattoo. Liam always shakes his head and says that if Harry keeps his grades up, they can talk about it again when Harry is 16. Harry pouts every time but Liam never fails to see a bit of hope light up his boy’s eyes and he vows not to break his half of this promise so long as Harry keeps up his end.

The months pass and Harry and Niall’s personal styles continue to change but Liam never says a word, choosing to let his boys figure out their own identities. And yes, Niall feels  a bit like his son now, too, so when the two boys get some inkling of some new fashion that they want to try, Liam just chuckles and chauffeurs them to the mall (after checking with Niall’s mum, of course).

He’ll never know how grateful Harry is that his father believes in him enough to let him make his own choices and mistakes or how important that fact will be to Harry when it comes to some important decisions a little further down the road.

 ~@~

 

Another year rolls by. Harry is fifteen now and Liam has started dating again. Liam has gotten pretty serious with a pretty, young woman named Sophia.

Harry doesn’t mind his father dating but he’s not really fond of the girl Liam has chosen. There’s just something about her that Harry can’t put his finger on. She makes him uneasy and he gets a little scared when he sees how happy she makes his dad. He doesn’t say anything though, refusing to be the thing that ends his father’s happiness.

He’s on the couch waiting up for his father to get back from a date, as he always does, when Liam walks in closing the door quietly behind him. Harry can tell right away that something is wrong because Liam is home way too early and his eyes are red-rimmed. Harry wordlessly opens his arms and Liam accepts the invitation, cuddling into the warmth and love his son offers. For the first time ever, Liam cries into his son’s shoulder instead of the other way around.

Harry will never know what happened because he’ll never ask for fear of causing his father more pain.

 ~@~      

 

Lots of things happen the year Harry turns sixteen.

Liam is only able to give Harry two gifts that year because one of them costs more than he can really afford. He has to take out a loan that will take him a couple of years to pay off but it’s his only son’s sixteen birthday and he’ll be damned if isn’t getting his son a car. He knows he could have gotten Harry a used one and Harry would have appreciated the gift just as much but, for once in his life, he wants to give Harry something perfect.

When he hands Harry the keys he chuckles as he sees Harry’s eyes go wide just before he bolts outside to find the car wrapped in a giant bow.

 Niall lets out a hoot of joy and comments on riding in style after he calls ‘shotgun’ on the first joyride.

 Harry hugs Liam tighter than Liam thinks he ever has before.

 When he’s free to breathe again,Liam hops in the car (completely ignoring Niall’s complaints about having to sit in the back) and directs Harry to the destination of his next gift.Harry throws his father another wide-eyed look of surprise when they pull up in front of a tattoo parlor. And when Liam just shrugs and tells Harry that he kept up his end of their bargain, the smile Harry gives back is blinding.

 Harry and Niall run inside before Liam is even out of the car. When he gets inside he sees the boys huddled over a book of artwork, whispering back and forth about what Harry should get and where.

 Liam goes ahead and signs the paperwork since Harry is underage and needs permission. Then, he leans against the wall waiting patiently for Harry to make his choice. He doesn’t rush his son because he knows this is a big decision that Harry will be stuck with for the rest of his life.

 “Dad,” Harry says pulling Liam from his thoughts. “What do  _you_  think I should get?”

 The fact that Harry asks his opinion means so much to Liam so he tries to give an answer worthy of the asking.

 “I think you should get something that has meaning. Something you want to remember forever because that’s how long it will be there,” Liam answers reminding Harry what a big deal this is.

 Harry nods, taking his father’s words to heart. He thinks to himself for a few minutes.

 Niall, for once in his life, stays quiet knowing that’s what Harry needs.

 Liam is a little worried when he sees a tear slip down Harry’s cheek but then Harry smiles and says he’s ready.

 And Liam may shed a tear or two when his son asks him to hold his hand as he gets his mother’s initials tattooed into his forearm.

 ~@~

 

A month after Harry’s birthday he says he has something important to tell Liam.

Liam sits on the couch opposite the armchair Harry is fidgeting in feeling a little worried. He can tell Harry is nervous and he feels guilty when he sees the fear in his son’s eyes even though he’s not sure what he’s done to make Harry fearful of being honest with him.

Finally, unable to stand the anticipation any longer, he places a steadying hand on Harry’s bouncing knee.

“You can tell me anything, Harry. You know that, right? I’ll never judge you or love you any less. Just…tell me. Whatever it is, it’ll be fine. I promise.”

 Harry stares at his father for a minute taking in his words and praying to God that they’re true. He nods, takes a deep breath, and tells his father the secret he’s known since he was fourteen but only just has the courage to admit.

 “I’m gay.”

 Liam watches his son’s eyes fall to the floor after his confession and feels disappointment flood through him that his son feels like he needs to be ashamed of who he is. He’s not disappointed in Harry by any means. His son has never made Liam anything other than proud and Liam rushes to gather his son in his arms and make sure that Harry knows that.

 Harry releases a heavy breath of relief as he wraps his arms around his father, holding tight, thankful that he hasn’t lost the most important person in his world.

 ~@~

 

Three weeks later, Liam meets Zayn. Zayn is the boy who will take a lot of Harry’s firsts.

When Liam meets him, Zayn is already Harry’s first boyfriend and has taken Harry’s first kiss. (Technically, Harry’s first kiss went to a girl named Matilda when he was 11 but Zayn gets the first one that means something.)

Two months later, Zayn will be Harry’s first blowjob which Liam only finds out about accidentally when Niall opens his mouth at the wrong time.

 Liam doesn’t say anything. He lost his virginity when he was fourteen so he thinks Harry’s done pretty well to hold on to his for this long. When they are alone though, he throws Harry a box of condoms that he happened to pick up from the drugstore when he went out for ‘air’ after hearing Niall’s comment. He reminds his son to always be safe and leaves it at that to spare either of them further embarrassment.

 Harry puts the box in the drawer of his side table after sliding a single packet into his wallet and thanks the universe for giving him such a cool father.

 A month later, Zayn becomes Harry’s first heartbreak. It happens much the same as when Liam and Sophia broke up. Harry comes home early from a night out with Zayn with tears in his eyes and Liam offers his arms without speaking. He lets Harry cry as long as he needs to. When it seems like Harry is running out of tears, Liam runs to get them some ice cream and cheesy movies after calling Niall to come over.

 Harry actually manages a smile or two by the end of the night that doesn’t feel  _completely_  false, all thanks to his two best friends.

 ~@~

 

Two years later, Liam watches proudly through the lens of his video camera as Harry graduates.

Liam had managed to scrounge and save enough money over the years to pay for Harry’s first year at Uni but his boy is graduating with a rank of third in his class and has earned himself a full ride to Columbia. Liam dreads Harry leaving to go to school that’s all the way in America but Harry has vowed to use his college money from Liam to fly home every single break. Liam couldn’t be prouder as he wipes a never ending stream of tears from his eyes.

At some point, Niall streaks across the stage in all his naked glory and Liam laughs along with everyone else while inside he’s secretly grateful that Harry doesn’t always go along with his crazy best friend’s antics.

After the ceremony, Liam and Harry have a celebratory dinner with Niall and his mother. Niall is fully clothed for the meal.

Two months later, Niall and Liam accompany Harry to the airport for a round of tearful goodbyes strewn with promises of weekly phone calls and trips back home whenever possible.

Liam doesn’t know what to do with himself in his empty flat. He’s grateful when Niall, who decided on a university closer to home for its affordability, takes pity on him and visits every now and again whenever the urge strikes.

Harry keeps his promise and calls both Niall and Liam once a week filling them in on his classes and new friends and all the crazy goings on in America.

 ~@~

 

Harry’s first few visits home are joyous and full of hugs and tears. Liam never realizes just how much he’s missed Harry until he’s standing right in front of him again. And it’s always just a little bit harder to watch him leave again.

Their first Christmas since Harry left for university is beautiful and amazing. Liam had started seeing a girl named Danielle and Harry gets to meet her when she stops by on Christmas evening to drop off a gift for Liam. She hadn’t planned on staying, not wanting to intrude on what little time Harry and Liam have available together but Harry insists when he sees the hearts in his father’s eyes when he looks at Danielle.

When she leaves, smiling and gracious after having tea with them, Harry tells his father that he approves and Liam thinks that’s maybe the best present Harry could have given him after the gift of his presence.

 ~@~

 

A year later, just before Christmas, Harry asks if it’s okay if he makes the trip home a few days later than usual (on Christmas day) and if it’s alright if he brings a friend. Liam agrees, hiding his disappointment at losing a few days with his son and wondering if the friend Harry is bringing home is  _just_  a friend.

 Liam’s hunch turns out to be right as he learns when Harry introduces the boy with him as his boyfriend, Louis, to Liam and Danielle (who has since moved in).

 Louis asks questions and makes jokes and when Liam see’s the way he looks at Harry, he loves the boy already. By the end of the holiday, Louis has impressed both Liam and Niall and Harry breathes a sigh of relief because he’s in love with the boy and Niall or his father hating him would have been a deal-breaker.

Harry heads back to uni with a burden lifted from his heart and the boy of his dreams wrapped in his arms.

 ~@~

 

It’s another year later, closer to Valentine’s than Christmas, when there’s an unexpected knock on Liam’s door. He opens the door to find a slightly disheveled Louis standing there looking tired and frazzled. Liam’s first reaction is confusion, then fear.

 "Louis? Oh, my God. Has something happened?" Liam asks, hands grasping at his shirt as though trying to settle his thundering heart.

 "Oh! No, of course not. Everything's fine," Louis rushes to assure Liam feeling guilty for scaring Harry's father like that.

 "Thank God," Liam says relieved before inviting Louis in.

 Before Liam can ask what's going on Louis blurts out the reason for his visit.

"I want to marry your son."

Liam is struck dumb for a moment and has to sit down. Louis takes this as a bad sign.

"I know I'm not perfect but I _promise_ that I will love Harry and cherish every moment we have together for the rest of my life if he'll have me..."

Liam looks up to see Louis's eyes watering as he promises to take care of his son. Liam stops Louis' rambling with a sudden hug.

"You have my blessing. You've been a part of this family for a while now already. I quite like the idea of making it official," Liam tells Louis with a smile while still smothering him in a hug.

Louis grips Liam even more tightly than he already was at Liam's words and thanks him profusely before dashing off to the airport, trying to get back as quickly as possible so that he can (hopefully) be that much closer to Forever with the curly-haired boy who's stolen his heart.

 ~@~

Harry and Louis get married on a Saturday in July at the church where Liam married Harry's mother. 

Niall is Harry's best man and Liam stands beside him as one of the groomsmen. Louis' childhood friend, Stan, stands on Louis' side beside the three eldest of Louis' sisters Lottie, Georgia, and Fizzy. His youngest sisters, twins named Daisy and Phoebe, as flowergirls make a spectacle of themselves to everyone's delight.

Harry and Louis say their own vows making Liam tear up a bit. He looks out at the guests and sees Danielle wiping away a tear of her own. They smile at each other, both imagining what it will be like when the two of them stand there like that.

Liam pulls his attention back to the ceremony just in time for the big pronouncement and kiss to follow. Then, watches his son walk out of the church with the love of his life and can only feel pride and joy.

At the reception, Liam takes pictures as Harry and Louis feed each other cake, as they have their first dance as husbands, and as they look at each other like they'll never look at anyone else for as long as they live. (He might also get a shot of Niall streaking across the dancefloor.)

Before the happy couple leave for their honeymoon, Harry pulls Liam aside and thanks him for being as amazing father and always believing in him.

Later, Danielle will hold Liam as he cries happy tears and silently thanks God (as he has everyday since Harry's birth) for the amazing gift of his son.

 ~@~

 

Later that year, Harry will be best man at Liam and Danielle's wedding. He'll be sporting three new tattoos that Liam won't notice right away but will ask about later. Harry will explain how he's always remembered Liam's advice from when he got his first tattoo at the age of 16 and got tattoos that held special meaning to him, things he never wants to forget. There's a four-leaf clover on his wrist for Niall, a lock on his ankle for Louis who has the corresponding key tattooed in the same place, and an infinity symbol on his forearm just under his mother's initials. The last is for his father who always has been and Harry is pretty sure always will be the best friend he's ever had.

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr is suddenclarityharry if you wanna talk or whatever. :)


End file.
